After Chavan's portfolios, Sibal gets telecom too

Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal was on Monday given the additional charge of the telecom ministry by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a development that takes the portfolio away from the Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam at least for the time being.

Official sources said Sibal will hold the charge of the ministry held by A Raja, who on Sunday resigned after allegations of a massive scam in 2G spectrum allocation. The arrangement may be temporary in view of the ongoing Parliament session when issues related to the ministry are to be handled at the senior level, particularly at a time when the ministry is facing allegations of corruption.

By tradition, a reshuffle of the council of ministers is not undertaken during a Parliament session. Sibal, a renowned lawyer-turned-politician, was a week earlier given the additional charge of ministries of science and technology and earth sciences, which fell vacant after incumbent Prithviraj Chavan was made the chief minister of Maharashtra.

In another decision, V Narayansamy, minister of state for parliamentary affairs, was given additional charge of the department of personnel and training, which also fell vacant after Chavan's departure.